USC has hired former assistant Steve Sarkisian, opening the head coaching job at Washington. UCLA’s Jim Mora, fresh off a dominant win over the Trojans, was once a UW walk-on.

See where this is going?

Back in 2006, while still a head coach for the Atlanta Falcons, Mora himself had once stoked rumors about returning to his alma mater.

“If that job’s open,” Mora said on Seattle’s KJR-AM, “you’ll find me at the friggin’ head of the line with my resume in my hand ready to take that job.”

He later said that he was only joking during the interview; Hugh Millen, one of the show’s co-hosts, was a former teammate and college roommate at Washington. Mora offered a similar explanation last month on a Pac-12 teleconference, adding that the outburst had cost him his job.

Back then, however, Mora was an unproven NFL coach who would be quickly bounced not only by the Falcons, but also by the Seattle Seahawks — forcing him to reconsider his coaching future. Some time off rehabbing a knee injury on the Washington campus helped push him into the college ranks, where he has since turned UCLA into one of the Pac-12’s up-and-comers.

Would he leave it all behind for what he once called his dream job?

Not likely. In two years, Mora has laid the foundation for what he believes will be a program that contends for BCS bowls. After Saturday’s 35-14 win over USC, the team’s first in the Coliseum since 1997, he declared to his team that they “own this town” outside the visiting locker room. In the postgame press conference, he spouted the word “special” about a half-dozen times.

“I think it shows you what’s going on at UCLA,” he said Saturday night. “It’s an exciting time at UCLA, man. It’s an exciting time to be a UCLA Bruin, man. You want to play for a fun, tough, hard-nosed football team that can win games anywhere? Come to UCLA.”

The Bruins’ 2013 recruiting class was their finest in years, resulting in a group of freshmen that both contributed immediately and bear star potential. UCLA played 18 true freshmen this season, more than any other major conference team.

Most important among them is linebacker/running back Myles Jack, who became the first player to ever win both Pac-12 Freshman Defensive and Offensive Player of the Year honors. After taunting the UW sideline in a win last month, Jack admitted that the feeling was “mutual” between him and the Huskies. The former Bellevue High standout wouldn’t likely sit out a year to transfer there, even if his coach does leave.

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The primary arguments for Mora taking the UW job are his alumni ties and far better facilities, but doing so would force him to give up the natural recruiting advantages of Los Angeles.

The 52-year-old has also started settling down in Southern California. His wife, Shannon, has worked on expanding their charity, the Jim Mora Count On Me Family Foundation, which helps at-risk children. His son, Cole, plays soccer 50 miles away at Claremont McKenna.

More likely than a departure is that Mora parlays his leverage into a contract extension and more pay for his assistants. He signed a one-year extension through 2017 in January after turning down overtures from Auburn, Tennessee and the San Diego Chargers. UCLA is also still fundraising for a $50 million football facility.

Sarkisian’s arrival across town could even help Mora extend UCLA’s claim on the city. The former Trojans assistant is a capable recruiter, but many USC fans are upset that the school appeared to settle for a lackluster name. Though he lifted a winless Huskies team out of the cellar, Sarkisian has failed push the program past also-ran status. Through five years in Seattle, he has not won more than five Pac-12 games in any season.

If part of a USC coach’s job includes beating the Bruins and Notre Dame, it’s hard to imagine either Mora or Brian Kelly losing much sleep now.